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One Direction singer Harry Styles has registered four new solo tracks with the performing rights organisation ASCAP, the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers.

One Direction have been on a break since December 13, following a farewell performance on The X Factor. The revelation that Styles has listed new songs with ASCAP suggests he may plan to perform as a solo act during the group’s hiatus.

Harry Styles performs in LA, December 2015Credit:
Kevin Winter/Getty

Since early 2014, there have been rumours that Styles was planning a solo record, but this month he firmly denied that an album was in the works. When asked if he had recorded any solo material during an interview for Alan Carr's Channel 4 chat show, Styles said: “No... we all write kind of separately and for other people and do stuff and bring it back, and that is it."

The four new songs listed on ASCAP are called Already Home, Coco, Endlessly and 5378 Miles. Styles shares co-writing credits for the songs with Snow Patrol guitarist John McDaid and the dance songwriter/producer Gary Go. On all four songs “Harry Edward Styles” is listed as the only performer, which has fuelled speculation that the tracks may appear on a forthcoming solo album.

The title of one song – 5378 Miles – has sparked interest among fans, many of whom believe it is a reference to a particular city. One Tumblr user noted that the distance suggests a flight between Los Angeles and the UK.

Styles may not be the first One Direction member to release a solo record. His former bandmate Zayn Malik is currently working on a debut LP, following his departure from the band in March. In July, the 22-year-old announced he had signed a deal with RCA Records, and has been recording new material with Malay (Ryan James Ho), the producer of Frank Ocean’s Grammy-winning 2012 album Channel Orange. Malik is expected to release his first solo album in 2016.